You probably never knew Lillian Hearst. But she sent you a gift, and I wanted to share it with you. It won’t be necessary to send a thank-you note – just pay it forward by sharing her gift with someone else. Oh, and of course, use the gift yourself.
Lillian lived to be 92 years old. I was honored to serve for a time as her pastor. She was highly respected in our community – a “lady of the old school,” with a heart for people and a love for the Lord.
A few days after her funeral, I was visiting at the Magnolia Retirement Center, where Lillian lived. There someone told me that for as long as they had known her, up until the time of the stroke that ultimately took her life, Mrs. Hearst always had something planned to do the next day. There was always tomorrow – something to look forward to, something to prepare for, a reason to get out of bed in the morning. It sounds rather simple, but it struck me as very profound. Maybe that’s one of the reasons Mrs. Hearst lived so long.
Tomorrow. What a charming word!
It appears 53 times in the Bible.
- We are told not to boast about Tomorrow in Proverbs 27:1, because we don’t know what a day may bring forth.
- Jesus said not to worry about Tomorrow; Tomorrow will worry about its own things (Matthew 6:34).
- James warns sternly not to presume upon Tomorrow, because our lives are like a vapor (James 5:13-14).
But the other 50 times the word appears, it brings with it a godly kind of anticipation. Many times in the Old Testament one of the prophets or the Lord Himself would announce that something was to happen Tomorrow. The call was clear: anticipate, prepare, and get up ready!
Where would we be without Tomorrow? On a deathbed of despair. Little Orphan Annie would have nothing to sing about. Fleetwood Mac and President Clinton would have had no campaign song to charm the nation with. Miss Scarlett would never have made it back to Tara. And we would be left to assume that the blessings of God were reserved for someone else, somewhere else.
You need to be ready for Tomorrow today. How? By releasing your fears and your plans to God, then choosing today how you will live Tomorrow.
You’ll never be ready for Tomorrow by worrying, tempting as it may be to worry. And you surely won’t be ready by presuming you have it all under control. But if you can go to bed tonight with a clean heart and wake up tomorrow with a plan of action – even if it’s just one thing – you’ll be amazed at the stability, the peace, and the achievement that will characterize your life.
God’s gonna do something Tomorrow. In you. For you. With you. Through you, if you’ll let Him.
“But what if I die today?” you ask.
Then Tomorrow He will have done the ultimate: He will have turned your mourning into dancing, your sackcloth into a garment of praise. You’ll be in Heaven, where Tomorrow can never be taken from you again. But until you get there, get ready. God has a Tomorrow for you here that’s worth anticipating.
“Don’t stop thinking about Tomorrow,” the song says. It says it well. Mrs. Hearst lived it well. And I have to tell you, on a day I needed it, I’m inspired. I want to live it well, too.
How about you? What’s on your action plan Tomorrow? Frettin’ don’t count. Nor do the things you assume others are going to do. What are you going to do?
One more thing. What works for individuals also works for churches, nonprofits, and organizations. Your organization doesn’t have to have the next 20 years figured out in detail, nice as that would be. What about Tomorrow? What is Tomorrow’s need, Tomorrow’s challenge, Tomorrow’s calling?
Let’s do all we have to do today. But for Jesus’ sake, and the sake of your mental health, your children, and your legacy… don’t stop thinking about Tomorrow.
106110.How? It’s almost a bug. One of the flimsy leaves or thingys at the top, you have to keep it intact, and then when it falls, it has the ability to easily hit and swing out the right inner wall of stones, and they will fall and get crushed.
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